Pet Stores: How do I rescue from pet-shops?

[SnowFlower]

I am appalled at the conditions guinea pigs are living in at our local pet shops. How do I approach management to save the worst ones? If vet care is needed can I approach corporate if there is one for covering the bills? I am fully prepared to take care of the bills if needed, but I think it would be beneficial that the shops feel some financial impact. I have read a thread on hee pertaining to pet-shop rescue, but it did not list any details - like what to say to the shop, how to get the piggie out of there with no money changing hands (or at least a discount if I am going to be going straight from the shop to my cavy savvy vet.

[Ilovemypiggies1]

There is no way to rescue from pet stores. If you "rescue" an animal there, they will just replace that animal with more animals to get more money and then the pet stores get more money because of people buying them. If you want to rescue call and look around at local shelters for any guinea pigs in need of good homes. You can also check Craigslist for any in your area. They will most likely be healthier and then you are actually saving a life rather than making it miserable for more guinea pigs.

[rabbitsncavyluv]

By not buying them.

You are just support them and their practices by buying them, and allowing them to continue doing business. There are better ways to help than buying their guinea pigs. Raise awareness of their plight, picket, document conditions and send them to ASPCA, your local animal control, and the local news.

As stated, they will just replace the ones you take with more from their breeder/ pet mill while lightened of their responsibilities.

If you want to rescue, then read http://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=14095 and rescue from animal shelters and the like, the ones who really need you and where you can make a difference.

[Henle15]

I think all of us have either fallen or almost fallen into this trap the petstores set up. They set up their bad care on purpose so people feel bad about not buying or taking them. Then they keep bringing more and more in to take its' place. They are not held accoountable for their care and so they continue their horrible care.

WE (people) need to stop buying from them, going there and buying supplies from them, stop even going into their stores for the foot traffic, and last but not least demand better care thru legislation.

I know most of those things sounds like a far stretch, but if they are not "punished" or nothing ever happens, then they will never change their ways!

I applaud your want to help, but your help is needed more at local animal shelters or rescues. Even if you take a pig from the petstore for no money, they will just buy another to replace it and sell that one. They get guinea pigs for like $8 so they really don't lose much money if you take it for free. Where they make the money is through the things people buy...not the guinea pig intself.

They actually lose money by selling animals, but without the animals they sell, people won't go to their stores to buy the products (where they make the money). The higher ups have even told me that they only sell animals because people will not shop at the store without having those animals there.

Many people don't know that many shelters that get piggies or any other small animals won't even put them up for adoption, instead they euthanize them immediately. So which pig would you rather save? A pig that is on death row or a pig that is being housed in horrible conditions that at least has a life to live (even if it's not a great one).

Before I started rescuing (the right way), I fell into the petstore trap so I understand where you are coming from and what you are trying to do.

[fieryone]

The only way to rescue a pig from a pet store is if someone has dumped them there and you take them as "free to a good home". The pet store doesn't own them, so to speak.

[Seonta]

Originally Posted by fieryone

The only way to rescue a pig from a pet store is if someone has dumped them there and you take them as "free to a good home". The pet store doesn't own them, so to speak.

Not always, some of these pet stores will take the ones dumped out and resell them, the ones around me take walk in animals and turn around to resell them.

Jacks Aquarium for instance is horrible about it one near me has over twenty five baby guinea pigs in the front for adoption ranging from a few months to about six. After that they usually disappear. The males and females are kept in the same cage and when I questioned the manager she said: They're just babies right now, they can't breed... if one is pregnant then you can always bring the babies back here we won't charge you. -side note I don't plan to buy, I only went in to see the conditions... one aquarium for twenty five stressed out guinea pigs. I'm pretty sure the ferrets that were in surrounding tanks, people walking around, and the general atmosphere just had them to the point where they were huddled, breathing fast, and clearly upset.


If the animals that the original post was about are sick then you could call animal protection/animal control and report the situation- there's a chance you could get the store banned from having live animals, but it depends on where you live.

[fieryone]

Originally Posted by Seonta

Not always, some of these pet stores will take the ones dumped out and resell them, the ones around me take walk in animals and turn around to resell them.

That's why I specified if you take them as "free to a good home"

[pigsmakemesmile]

In my opinion, the only one true and most affective way to stop the selling of animals in petstores is through strong legislation, so strong that it would make it impossible to get animals in a petstore environment to be sold. Otherwise, not purchasing products from a petstore that sells animals is a start. Also public education...start at the roots, Kindergarten, beginning with getting schools to stop displaying classroom pets.
My daughter works at petsmart now, she use to work at petsupplies plus until they made her so unhappy that she had to quit, most of my doing though. My daughter has called me on countless occassions about people who walk into the store to surrender the pets. Most recently was 2 guinea pigs. The manager there was going to put them into the reptile cage until my daughter unleashed her wrath and told him otherwise. She still has her job after that and the manager learned something new that night. Another worker there whose guinea pig at home died a few weeks earlie took them in. I'd like to start a rescue in a few years once I can cut back on my current full time job. I have so many animals now I mine as well. My daughter has brought home rats, hamsters, rabbits, many of which we kept. Sadly in Stroudsburg PA, the only local animal shelter was closed down...my daughter volunteered there 3 days a week. Since the only shelter in Stroudsburg pa was closed so there has been an onslaught of "dumping" at the pet store. You would be better off aquiring a guinea pig from a rescue or shelter. Search high-kill shelters first, then no kill then rescues. Many pigs in these places more than likely were aquired at a petstore...another reason not to petstore purchase.
So to answer your question how to rescue from a pet-shop...you can't.

[eschimpf]

Originally Posted by Ilovemypiggies1

There is no way to rescue from pet stores. If you "rescue" an animal there, they will just replace that animal with more animals to get more money and then the pet stores get more money because of people buying them. If you want to rescue call and look around at local shelters for any guinea pigs in need of good homes. You can also check Craigslist for any in your area. They will most likely be healthier and then you are actually saving a life rather than making it miserable for more guinea pigs.

I agree, don't buy them there are people like myself that foster guinea pigs that are healthy and happy. And if it wasn't for pet stores selling sick or even pregnant guinea pigs we wouldn't need fosters like myself. Always check you SPCA and you can always complain to the managment about the conditions of the animals and depending on what they do or don't do about it you can always talk to you spca about it.

[Paula]

It's not a direct need for fosters that pet stores and breeders create, but they are the underlying cause of so many homeless animals being dumped in shelters and rescues.

In any event, as many others have pointed out, there's no true "rescuing" from a pet store, because while you may be helping that one animal, it doesn't address the root issue, which is that the animals are being sold as merchandise in the first place.

As hard as it may be to leave an animal you know is sick, it's really better overall not to buy them in the first place. Something you can do is address the issue with management until something's actually done about it. Unfortunately, that "something" may simply be removing the animal from the floor to the back room. There's not any way to know, but at least one possible outcome is that the manager might be compelled to seek proper veterinary care.

[SnowFlower]

Thank you everyone. It makes alot of sense now, but as a previous poster said - it is SO hard to just walk away when you know they are hurting. I went into the store to buy dog food and just checked out the Guinea Pig section. Not only do they sell low-quality food and hay, but there is absolutely no selection of decent toys and the like. No wonder so many people out there don't take care of thier piggies like they should - unwittingly they go to the shop, get a possibly pregnant or mis-sexed pig or pigs, and get the discounted "Guinea Pig Starter Set" with small cages, bad bedding, etc.

I am currently waiting on news for at least 5 piggies in need of a loving home, so I will postpone my trip to the shelters and animal control to look for piggies in need of saving. However, when room opens up in my little rescue, that will be the first place I go.

[blackarrow]

One thing you can do - go to the store and tell them that you are no longer going to be buying your dog food there because of their policy of selling small animals, and that you will be encouraging others to boycott them as well.

[eschimpf]

Also, like I have in the past, you can make a big "toddler fit" in the store when its busy. I've done this about a lot of things, I swear one of these days they'll kick me out. When you do this others will see how upset you are and in a lot of cases they go see for themselves. I usually don't get anywhere with the staff BUT other people take notice and pass on the word to friends and families.